Saturday, December 09, 2006
Monday, December 04, 2006
Dear Friends, December4, 2006
Snow has fallen today, and presently it is 9 degrees. I think winter has finally arrived! Wow, time is flying by. It has been too long since we have written. We wanted to take a few moments and give you some highlights from this fall here at Horn Creek. Many fun things are underway here at camp!
First of all, I took several trips this fall as Horncreek explores the idea of starting some camps that are specifically dedicated to underprivileged youth. We continue to be moved in our hearts to open our camp to those who normally could not afford to come. It has been amazing to see how things are coming together. I went to Philadelphia for an inner city conference, and spent time in Branson, MO visiting Kids Across America. The result of these trips will hopefully two weeks of inner city youth camps next summer. We are praying for the kids and the money to come. It is an exciting step for all of us.
The internship this year has been awesome. We have been teaching our interns about community, accountability, honesty, vulnerability, and service. I have loved teaching these 8 folks and look forward to expanding the program next year. They have breathed new life into camp, and it has been so great to watch.
Bill McCoy and Polly Bennett have been such a blast to work with this year as well. We have worked well together, and have had a lot of fun with our guests. I can’t wait till we start getting our youth groups again after Christmas, because that is where we will thrive as a team. This time of year is pretty slow at camp, so we have been doing a lot of outside projects. Currently we are remodeling an old chapel at our camp. We want to turn it into a sacred place for prayer and worship. In the past it has been a meeting and storage space. “Extreme Home Makeover” on a much smaller scale….
Leslie and the girls are doing well. Emily and I got in a few ski days a few weeks ago. Leslie is involved in many things in town, especially Moms in Touch. The solid friendships for her have been a major answer to prayer! The girls are still enjoying school, and are enjoying life at a camp as well as activities in town. We truly love living in the mountains and in our little town of Westcliffe. (To give you an idea of what we mean by little, the local paper had a big article this week on how exciting it was that the bank was starting “telephone banking”.) This time of year is beautiful as well, and the snow is a delight.
Please stay in touch everyone! Check out the camp websight at www.horncreek.org.
-Jeff, Leslie, Emily, Sydney
Snow has fallen today, and presently it is 9 degrees. I think winter has finally arrived! Wow, time is flying by. It has been too long since we have written. We wanted to take a few moments and give you some highlights from this fall here at Horn Creek. Many fun things are underway here at camp!
First of all, I took several trips this fall as Horncreek explores the idea of starting some camps that are specifically dedicated to underprivileged youth. We continue to be moved in our hearts to open our camp to those who normally could not afford to come. It has been amazing to see how things are coming together. I went to Philadelphia for an inner city conference, and spent time in Branson, MO visiting Kids Across America. The result of these trips will hopefully two weeks of inner city youth camps next summer. We are praying for the kids and the money to come. It is an exciting step for all of us.
The internship this year has been awesome. We have been teaching our interns about community, accountability, honesty, vulnerability, and service. I have loved teaching these 8 folks and look forward to expanding the program next year. They have breathed new life into camp, and it has been so great to watch.
Bill McCoy and Polly Bennett have been such a blast to work with this year as well. We have worked well together, and have had a lot of fun with our guests. I can’t wait till we start getting our youth groups again after Christmas, because that is where we will thrive as a team. This time of year is pretty slow at camp, so we have been doing a lot of outside projects. Currently we are remodeling an old chapel at our camp. We want to turn it into a sacred place for prayer and worship. In the past it has been a meeting and storage space. “Extreme Home Makeover” on a much smaller scale….
Leslie and the girls are doing well. Emily and I got in a few ski days a few weeks ago. Leslie is involved in many things in town, especially Moms in Touch. The solid friendships for her have been a major answer to prayer! The girls are still enjoying school, and are enjoying life at a camp as well as activities in town. We truly love living in the mountains and in our little town of Westcliffe. (To give you an idea of what we mean by little, the local paper had a big article this week on how exciting it was that the bank was starting “telephone banking”.) This time of year is beautiful as well, and the snow is a delight.
Please stay in touch everyone! Check out the camp websight at www.horncreek.org.
-Jeff, Leslie, Emily, Sydney
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
What about the poor?
As I look at the beauty and wonder around me here at Horn Creek, I marvel at how God uses it to move people to him. It is awesome to see how lives are refreshed, renewed and transformed by the gospel through the vehicle of Gods majestic beauty here. The only thing that unsettles me, is that we are primarily a camp that serves those who can afford to come. In most cases, that means the white middle class. Yet there are so many who would love an opportunity to come and be refreshed in the moutains who will never have the opportunity. Yes, there are camps who have figured out ways to get the poor to their camps. But, there are still so many who will never come. Lately I just have not been able to let go of this growing desire to use my passion for camping, and Horn Creek to bless the poor. Yet how do we do it? We do not have the money, or the funds to embark on such a venture. We have a small budget, and we have our own financial woes at camp. We can't afford to let people come for free. Yet, maybe there is a way.... God can truly make a way can't he? I have so many dreams and ideas in my head, yet I have no idea how to make these dreams happen. Lord, I want to see the poor here at Horn Creek. I want to bless a poor child or family with the greatest week of their life. Granted, there are more basic things such as food or housing, or medical care that many of these folks need. But, what if we could use our camp to bless the poor spiritually. To bring them gospel truth, joy, beauty, worship, friendship, restoration, healing, and love. Yes, it may only be for a week, but many of us would agree that a week at camp can change a life! I will keep dreaming, and hoping, and praying that the Lord will make a way. Will you pray with me!
-Jeff Fox
Hello from Horn Creek. I can't believe fall is almost upon us. Well, up here at 9,000 feet, it definately is! Things here at camp are going very well. We just got back from taking our first intern class to Breckenridge for 3 days for orientation, hiking, and teaching. It was soooo good, and really encouraged me. I got to teach, lead hikes, and love on these young adults. The interns have come from Wisconsin, Kansas, Texas, and Colorado. We will have 9 interns total this year, and it already has been a blessing to Horn Creek.
The girls are now back in school, Emily in second grade and Sydney in pre-school. They seem to love it so far, and it is great for both of them to go back to familiar environments. Leslie and I hope to do some hiking together this fall now that both girls are in school. Camp life has been good to us the past few weeks. Things have finally slowed down a bit. We will primarily have weekend groups through the fall. Polly Bennett and Bill McCoy have been huge additions to my team this fall as well. We finally have a team in place that is ministry focused. We have already had some great laughs as well as some neat interaction with guests. Bill is so good with people, and he has a gift of putting everyone at ease. It has been fun catching up with him. The other day we were stacking wood at our campfire spot near a pond in the woods just laughing at how good it was to be where we were.
This fall I will be looking at some new options for Horn Creek. We are exploring ways to get inner city kids, poor families and anyone else who can't afford to come to camp to actually get to come and experience the Lord in the mountains. I will be going to an inner city conference in Philadelphia, as well as visiting Kanakuk in Branson to brainstorm ideas. One fun idea we are throwing around is having a camp over Christmas for families in Colorado who have been through financial hardship and can't afford presents, or a vacation. We would like to bring them up, give them a fun Christmas in the mountains, and share the gospel with them. I would love your prayers as we seek the Lord's will, and also try and figure out how to pull it off financially.
We miss you all and thank you for your prayers and encouragement. Feel free to write, call or email and let us know how you are doing.
Love, the Foxes
Friday, August 25, 2006
Summer Reflections
It has been one full year since arriving here with our loaded U-Haul. Wow. It has been fun reflecting on all that has happened in these last 12 months while at the same time, wrapping up our last week of summer camp. Things will slow down for a couple of weeks before the weekend groups kick in for the fall.
My summer staff was phenomenal this year. We have a few days left together before they all go home, but I have truly enjoyed getting to know them. Their energy and laughter made this season so fun; the girls know each by name and have loved all the extra attention! This summer was constant with folks in and out each week. With so many groups, it is hard to remember them all. But one of my favorites was a youth group from inner city Denver. I just really connected with the kids and leaders. Ok, my rapping did help a little. In fact, the kids challenged me to a rap battle with one of their rappers, which I subsequently won to the joy and surprise of the whole youth group. By the end of the week, some of the kids were sharing with me their own poems, beat boxes, and raps.
Another highlight was speaking for a week at our youth camp called Snow Ridge, run by the Campus Crusade staff. Each summer, a group of Campus Crusade college students come to do a work project here at Horn Creek. They serve as the counselors for the Snow Ridge campers. On the third night of camp, I got word that one of the Campus Crusade staff had accepted Christ. I guess she had never really connected with the Gospel message in a genuine way, and that week it all finally connected for her. Awesome! Interaction with the CC staff all summer was another blessing. Just being around college kids is a treat for both Leslie and myself.
This week we have a group of kids in from Pueblo who have lost loved ones close to them. They came with a group called “Clouds to Rainbows,” that specialize in counseling kids who have had traumatic losses. Several of the kids have lost parents to suicide. One nine-year-old boy had his grandfather shoot and kill his mother and then commit suicide himself. His father then later committed suicide. Yet, in spite of their pain, it has been humbling to watch these little kids laugh and enjoy life here at camp. We have loved bringing joy and the hope of the gospel to them this week.
This fall our internship will start. Polly Bennett, myself and a couple other staff will run the internship this year. We will start with 8 interns for the year and hope to have 12 next fall. I am also helping start a new ministry here at Horn Creek for inner city youth. Another director and myself will be traveling to Philadelphia for a CCDA conference, and will spend some through out the year building relationships with key inner city ministries. I am so very thankful, for the Lord has continued to give me opportunities to use my gifts and passions in new ways here at Horn Creek.
As a family we are doing well. School will be starting in a few weeks, so we are relishing our final days of summer. The girls have really connected with our summer staff, and there will be many tearful goodbyes in the next week as they all head back to school. It is neat to see Emily and Sydney fitting into their life here at camp, and watching them interact and plug in with guests. This week, I will be the family camp speaker here at the Lodge, so in a sense, the Fox family will get to be campers! We have already really enjoyed getting to talk with and get to know the families, some of whom have been coming for 20 or so years.
Thank you so much for your prayers, concern, encouragement and financial support. It has meant a great deal to us. We miss you all and would love to hear from you!
In Christ,
Jeff, Leslie, Emily and Sydney
My summer staff was phenomenal this year. We have a few days left together before they all go home, but I have truly enjoyed getting to know them. Their energy and laughter made this season so fun; the girls know each by name and have loved all the extra attention! This summer was constant with folks in and out each week. With so many groups, it is hard to remember them all. But one of my favorites was a youth group from inner city Denver. I just really connected with the kids and leaders. Ok, my rapping did help a little. In fact, the kids challenged me to a rap battle with one of their rappers, which I subsequently won to the joy and surprise of the whole youth group. By the end of the week, some of the kids were sharing with me their own poems, beat boxes, and raps.
Another highlight was speaking for a week at our youth camp called Snow Ridge, run by the Campus Crusade staff. Each summer, a group of Campus Crusade college students come to do a work project here at Horn Creek. They serve as the counselors for the Snow Ridge campers. On the third night of camp, I got word that one of the Campus Crusade staff had accepted Christ. I guess she had never really connected with the Gospel message in a genuine way, and that week it all finally connected for her. Awesome! Interaction with the CC staff all summer was another blessing. Just being around college kids is a treat for both Leslie and myself.
This week we have a group of kids in from Pueblo who have lost loved ones close to them. They came with a group called “Clouds to Rainbows,” that specialize in counseling kids who have had traumatic losses. Several of the kids have lost parents to suicide. One nine-year-old boy had his grandfather shoot and kill his mother and then commit suicide himself. His father then later committed suicide. Yet, in spite of their pain, it has been humbling to watch these little kids laugh and enjoy life here at camp. We have loved bringing joy and the hope of the gospel to them this week.
This fall our internship will start. Polly Bennett, myself and a couple other staff will run the internship this year. We will start with 8 interns for the year and hope to have 12 next fall. I am also helping start a new ministry here at Horn Creek for inner city youth. Another director and myself will be traveling to Philadelphia for a CCDA conference, and will spend some through out the year building relationships with key inner city ministries. I am so very thankful, for the Lord has continued to give me opportunities to use my gifts and passions in new ways here at Horn Creek.
As a family we are doing well. School will be starting in a few weeks, so we are relishing our final days of summer. The girls have really connected with our summer staff, and there will be many tearful goodbyes in the next week as they all head back to school. It is neat to see Emily and Sydney fitting into their life here at camp, and watching them interact and plug in with guests. This week, I will be the family camp speaker here at the Lodge, so in a sense, the Fox family will get to be campers! We have already really enjoyed getting to talk with and get to know the families, some of whom have been coming for 20 or so years.
Thank you so much for your prayers, concern, encouragement and financial support. It has meant a great deal to us. We miss you all and would love to hear from you!
In Christ,
Jeff, Leslie, Emily and Sydney
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